So this morning's marathon was tough, but I wanted to get similar effect as I'm gonna get in two weeks at the Boise 70.3 so I went out to Garr Ranch and back for a 50 mile bike ride.
The wind was negligible on the causeway going out which was nice. It was tough going up around the visitors center as well as the North Island Hill, but I managed. My GPS totally died. It had new batteries, and it starts up, but even the slightest jolt and it turns off and then takes another minute to lock on to satellites, and then another tiny jolt and its off, so I had to go without data during today's ride which was frustrating.
I felt good though and kept a strong pace. I was able to pair up with a guy for about 8 miles along the Ranch Road until we got to the North Hill coming back. I had in my mind I wasn't going to kill it up this hill. I already asked way too much of my legs today and wasn't about to punish them. They've performed well and I can't abuse them. So by the time I got to the top of the hill, my partner was a good 3/4 mile ahead of me. By the time I got to the end of the causeway on the way back I had gained on him and he only had a few hundred yards.
The rest of the ride home was good and I had a tailwind from the west. I at least got a start and end time so I could figure the average speed. I left at 10:55 and arrived back at 1:45 so I did the 50 mile ride in 2:50 which is a 17.6 mph average. Not very fast, but considering the few decent hills, and the fact that I just ran a half marathon earlier in the morning, I'm not gonna feel guilty in the slightest.
I'll have to give it more thought and review the Boise course, but I'm thinking right now a 6 hour time in the 70.3 is reasonable. I'll have to delve into the details and fine tune that goal. Now I'm off to ebay to get a new Garmin venture etrex to replace the one that has served me so well for the past three years. Can't live without my data. I'm such a nerd.
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